Love Royally
by Anzia
Summary: Naruto is the oldest prince, and Sakura is yet a mere servant. They fall for one another, but will love prevail over status? Can they use a power within to find their own happy ending? NaruSaku & SasuSaku & some other minor pairings.
1. The leaky bucket

_**Love Royally**_

_By Anzia_

"_We look forward to the time when the Power of Love will replace the Love of Power. Then will our world know the blessings of peace."_

_-William E. Gladstone _

**Disclaimer for entire story:** I do not own Naruto or any of the Naruto characters.

**Pairings: **NarutoxSakura SasukexSakura Perhaps minor other pairings.

**Rating: **T, only because that is what Naruto is rated, and just to be safe.

**Notes: **This story is set in the medieval European times, with princes and kings, servants and whatnot. Naruto is slightly more mature and well behaved in this story, because of his upbringing under royalty. Sasuke and Sakura are also slightly out of character.

Chapter 1

Sakura threw the towel down on the floor and pushed her long pink hair behind her ears in frustration, her jade green eyes ablaze in fury.

"You _STUPID_, ignorant, pathetic excuse for a bucket!"

She kicked the poor defenseless bucket, causing it to shoot across the room and slam against the wall, spilling more soapy water onto the floor.

"_BUCKETS_ are for HOLDING water! Not leaking it! But nooo...you didn't get the notice, you **stupid** BUCKET!" She screamed at the inanimate object, flailing her arms around to portray how very frustrated she was.

She ranted and raved at the bucket that just lay there further spilling contents onto the now soaking wet kitchen floor. If the bucket was alive it would be screaming 'Oh my god she's going to kill me! I'm too young and wooden to die!' But it wasn't alive, so it just lay there.

Sakura stopped and stared with wide jade eyes at the now soaking kitchen floor. A leak had caused a tiny bit of water to spill onto the clean floor. A spilled bucket had SOAKED the floor. She sighed.

"Here they come, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1..."

"Grr. . ." Naruto grumbled as he stomped through the castle halls with his blonde head down to the floor in frustration.

"I can't believe it! It was only supposed to be a joke. Grounded, bah!"

Sakura's head quickly snapped around as she heard footsteps. Expecting to see the king she stood at attention, he was a pretty scary guy, but seeing it was only a price she sighed.

Naruto quickly turned the corner to grab a snack from the cupboard to satisfy his grumbling stomach, when his eyes went wide as he slipped on the wet floor. Naruto was completely taken off guard, and he fell backward while his momentum carried him quite quickly forward.

Sakura's eyes widened as the blond boy slipped on her mess and her reflexes kicked in as she dived to the floor beneath him, breaking his fall. She would rather be in trouble for the kitchen being wet than be in trouble for the kitchen being wet _and_ someone being harmed as an effect. Bah, stupid royalty. He crash landed on top of her and she winced, barely shielding her self with her arms, feeling the wind being knocked out of her.

Naruto braced himself to hit the floor, but he had a much softer landing than he expected. Never the less, he landed with a grunt and his face began to turn a slight shade of pink. Naruto hesitated a moment as he regained his bearings, then he realized what had saved his fall. He scrambled up to his knees sliding around on the floor a bit and quickly turned to see if she was alright like any proper prince should do. By now his face was a deep cherry red.

"Are you alright?" Naruto asked hopelessly. First he gets grounded for playing a prank, and now he falls on a girl. He didn't want to contemplate what his parents would to him if they figured out he hurt a princess. . . Wait. . . Naruto frowned slightly. It wasn't a princess. It was a servant. Naruto shook his head wiping the frown off his face. Who cares who it was? He had fallen on top of her. The least he could do was to make sure she was ok, and then. . . apologize.

Sakura took a breath and sat up, brushing the dust off her skirt. She blinked a few times before realizing the prince was talking to her. She nearly fell over in shock but gained her composure quickly.

"Oh yes, yes," She said hurriedly. "Sorry about the water...the bucket... um... leaked." She faked a smile and blushed a tiny bit. "I'm fine, are you okay Uzumaki-sama?"

Naruto blinked as his face lost a little of the red hue. "I'm alright. . ." he told her. Naruto glanced around at the wet floor and his gaze paused for a moment on the bucket. Then he turned again and looked down at himself.

"A little wet. . . but I'm alright." Naruto glanced up at her with a joking smile which quickly faded as his stomach gave a loud grumble and his face turned back to being cherry red. She giggled quietly then abruptly stopped herself.

You can't '_giggle_' at royalty! Though this boy was awfully nice...she cleared her throat and sat straighter. "Well that's a relief Uzumaki-sama. Um...can I get you anything to eat?" She smiled knowingly. "I'll clean this up later." She slowly stood up and made her way to the cupboard.

He paused for a moment as if trying to analyze her behavior. He shook his head again to clear his thoughts and slowly pushed himself up. He nearly slipped again, but managed to regain his balance. As soon as he was standing strait he shuttered slightly.

"Please. . . err. . ." he fumbled his words not quite sure what to call the girl. It didn't seem right. Certainly she wasn't royalty. . . she was in servant's clothes and she was far too nice to be royalty. She had to be a servant, but she was pretty enough to be a-…

Naruto gave his head a violent shake to knock the thought from his mind. He attempted to cover it up by pretending to get some soapy water out of his ear. It didn't work very well. Actually, it got soapy water in his ear.

"Don't call me 'Uzumaki-sama,'" Naruto stumbled. "I hate it when people call me that. Just call me Naruto."

Sakura stood there for a few moments, perplexed. She didn't really know what to say, you just don't call royalty by their first names. Heck, you rarely got to have a conversation with them!

"Uhh...oh...kay...um..._Naruto_." She said uncomfortably as she almost forced the words out of her mouth. She twiddled her fingers nervously. She really didn't want to get into any trouble.

"So Uzum-..._Naruto_...what would you like to eat?" She asked uncertainly.

Naruto frowned slightly as he realized the girl, whoever she was, was uncomfortable. He tried to stand up straighter and make himself look as princely as he could.

"Umm. . ." Naruto pondered. What did he want to eat? He nearly forgot he was hungry. "Is there just some extra bread or cheese somewhere, or ramen?" He asked awkwardly as he wiped some of the soap suds off his trousers.

Sakura pushed away her thought of uncertainly for now. She had to at least _seem_ confident in Naruto's, presence. She'd deal with those feelings later...

"Oh sure. Hold on..." She turned around to face the cupboard and pulled out a loaf of bread. "Um..." She hesitated. "Here you go...Naruto. Would you like to sit down or something...?" She asked absently, completely lost in thought again. Naruto accepted the loaf of bread and opened his mouth to speak.

Before he could answer, Sasuke, a boy with spiked ebony hair ran in. He was a servant, but seemed to be Sakura's superior. "Sakura you didn't mess up the kitchen again did you!?" As the other boy entered the kitchen, Naruto closed his mouth and stared at the boy as if absorbing his words for a moment. Sakura jumped at the sound of Sasuke's voice and slipped on the soaking wet floor, descending to the floor between the two boys.

Then as Sakura jumped and slipped, Naruto blinked quickly. With amazing reflexes that you would never expect someone to have who just slipped in some soapy water, Naruto dropped the loaf of bread and grabbed onto Sakura's shoulders with a firm grip in an attempt to keep her from hitting the ground and to help her regain her balance.

Sakura felt she was falling and braced herself for impact against the floor before she felt a pair of strong hands grab her shoulders, keeping her from falling. She stumbled up before realizing that a _prince_ was _touching_ her. She felt her whole face heat up and tried to cover her blush. She looked away nervously and mumbled a small thanks.

Sasuke growled quietly, barely audible. Sakura was blushing because of the oldest prince! And she's known him for what, _four_ minutes? He pushed away his rage and sighed, turning to Sakura, who was blushing like crazy. Either because of the Prince, himself, or almost falling in front of both of them, he didn't know. But she looked really embarrassed.

Sasuke sighed. "Sakura...you can be such a klutz. Sorry for scaring you." She looked away and mumbled. "It's okay." before smoothing down her dress.

He shook his head and turned to the prince. He bowed. "Sorry about the mess Uzumaki-sama. Sakura can be a little...um..._absent_ at times." He glanced at Sakura who had just turned another shade of red. He ruffled his hair. "We'll have this cleaned up in no time...won't we Sakura?"

Naruto's hand twitched slightly as Sasuke called him 'Uzumaki-sama.' He blinked when Sakura blushed. He didn't think anyone could turn as embarrassingly red as he always did. He was known by some of the royalty as 'Prince Cherry.' Mainly by most of the older princesses for…_obvious_ reasons. Actually he thought it was kinda cute-

"Yes Sasuke." Sakura mumbled. Why did she have to be at the bottom of the food chain here? Stupid higher uppers than her...think they're so cool because they're just...she sighed..._higher up_.

Naruto turned his head away from Sakura and gave a sharp nod to the new boy to agree with what he said and to knock his thoughts back in order. He was a prince. He shouldn't even be talking to servants unless he was giving them orders for something or another.

"I expect nothing less," Naruto improved to the new boy who was obviously Sakura's superior. "Someone could crack their head open if they slipped on that mess." He tried to brush some of the water off his clothes as if to emphasize his point. Within a short moment Naruto frowned and gave up on his futile attempt.

He looked down at himself in disgust. "This will take forever to dry," he groaned. Naruto quickly made his way to the kitchen entrance, avoiding the puddle and left the kitchen to go change before someone could say another word. He left his loaf of bread sitting on the ground behind.

The two stood in silence as the prince made his exit. After a while Sasuke turned to Sakura. "Sakura..." He sighed. "Again?"

She frowned and picked up the bread before placing it on the table. It was a waste to throw it away, no matter how _useless_ it may seem to the royalty.

She sighed. "Sorry Sasuke...it won't happen again."

Sasuke ruffled his ebony hair again, it was his nervous habit. "Umm...ok." He coughed uncomfortably at the heavy tension in the air. "So...you clean this up Sakura...I'll come check back in an hour. I doubt you have to clean the floor now, and luckily for you, no one was hurt." He said curtly and walked out the door.

She glared at his retreating back before flopping down on the floor. She rolled up the sleeve on her left arm and uncovered a huge colorful bruise. She winced and mumbled. "I guess that makes me a no one." She sighed and rolled her sleeve back down, making a mental note to put something on that later.

She surveyed the kitchen and sighed yet again. This would take more than an hour to clean up. She glanced at the clock. But that's all the time she had, so she better get started. She grabbed a towel from the table, sighing in relief when she found it was still dry, and grabbed the now empty bucket. "I'll have to fix this later..." She mumbled to herself.

As she absorbed the water in the towel and wrung it up in the bucket she mumbled to herself. It's not like she had anyone else to talk to, but Sasuke, who was probably off doing something more exiting than cleaning a kitchen floor. She sighed for the umpteenth time that day. She worked a little faster while talking to herself.

"Oh sure...leave the peasant girl to clean the floor...just because I'm lower than him...can't help a girl out. It's not like I chose to work here, like Sasuke...it's not like I get paid..." She rolled her deep green eyes. "Oh no, he think that's a burden. Getting paid to work. Me? I'm obviously no one. No one. My parents in debt to the king...died...and the only thing they left me is their debt...how very kind of them..." She muttered. "Why, I don't even remember my parents! I just remember growing up in the cellars here, raised part-time by mother Tsunade. I just gotta hold on...'till my 16th birthday. Then I can get paid for my job." She smiled to herself. "And I won't be lower than Sasuke!" She stopped and paused, then sighed. "Unless he moves up in the ranks. Well...I'm going to celebrate my 16th with a cake! Yes, I'm going to bake myself a cake! Only 2 months left!" She grinned and begun to dry the floor with more determination than ever.

Naruto quickly walked/jogged through the smaller passageways of the castle that he knew so well. He took all the paths he knew no one ever used 1) because he had been embarrassed enough already today and 2) he was grounded and wasn't even supposed to be out of his room. About halfway to his room he paused for a breather on some winding stairs in one the towers. He sat down on a cold stone stair. He hated stairs. Especially the ones in the towers, but this was the price he had to pay for not getting into any deeper trouble. He didn't know why he was so tired though. He usually didn't have to take a break. Grumble. Naruto groaned. He forgot the bread in the kitchen.


	2. Rugs, tassels, and staircases

**Additional Notes:** Sakura's "inner self" will have a small part in this story, much like the series. But in opposition to the Naruto series, she will be telling Sakura to be rational, instead of being her irrational and crazy side.

**Author's Notes:** I got…well…I didn't get any reviews last time. I got a few hits, but it would mean a lot if you would review. Just take the time to tell me to…hurry up and update…or…tell me you like it, whatever. Reviews are appreciated.

Also, I typed this one up quick while my train of thought was still rolling down the tracks. Unfortunately, all updates will not be this quick, because the train get's derailed quickly, and is difficult to get back on track.

Well hope you enjoy reading as much as I do writing! Thanks!

Chapter 2

Naruto put his head in his hands and moaned. He was hungrier now than if he had just stayed in his room. Of course he couldn't go back now. Not without embarrassing himself again. Especially if Sakura was there. What was it about her? He had met plenty of other girls before princesses and servants alike. There was nothing that special about her. . . or was there?

It didn't' matter though. On his sixteenth birthday he would be married off to some stuck-up princess of some other castle. Yep, that is pretty much the life of the king's oldest son. Sometimes he wished he was a girl. He was actually the fourth sibling of six.

He had three older sisters, one younger sister, and the youngest was his eleven year old brother. Being a girl wouldn't really solve his problems though. Then he would just be sold off to some prince of another castle. That is what happened to his older sisters and what his younger sister is in the process of doing. That is royalty for you. Everyone else choosing what your life is going to be like. He wanted to be his own person who made his own rules.

"I wonder what it would be like to be a servant. . . " Naruto pondered. Sure you had to work, but there were no lessons or formal balls to go to. He shuddered at the thought. There were no duties to be preformed, no table manners, and no ceremonies to attend. Also he was quite sure servants could choose who they were going to marry.

Naruto shook his head again. He was thinking too fast. Sure he was almost sixteen, but marriage still seemed so far off. There was nothing he could do about it though. He didn't get to choose his destiny.

Naruto stood up and took a deep breath before plodding up the rest of the stairs and sneaking down the hall and into his room, locking the door behind him.

Naruto sighed as he glanced around his giant room. The room was pretty much decorated with every expensive thing imaginable. Red rugs adorned the floor, tapestries hung on the walls, chests and several dressers of the finest craftsmanship lined the walls, a brick fireplace against the right wall, his giant bed with ten feather pillows in the center of the room up against the left wall was perfectly made, and he even had an adjacent room with a bath tub. He never really liked any of it. Suddenly there was a ruffling sound and a small coo from the corner of the room. Oh, yah. There was one thing he liked.

"Bisu!" Naruto exclaimed as he ran over the corner of the room. He nearly forgot about his feathery friend. The full-grown white owl ruffled its feathers inside the elaborate gold and silver bird cage on a stand in the corner of the room. Naruto opened the cage and gave the bird a short pet.

He couldn't believe he almost forgot about his friend. The owl gave a soft coo and then settled back down to continue her nap. Naruto laughed softly and closed the cage. Owls were very rare, especially white ones, he was lucky he got one. But he was a prince.

He paused for a moment watching the owl fall asleep once again, and then went in search for a dry pair of clothes. He went over to one of the chests by his bead and groaned when he found nothing inside. After a moment he reluctantly went to one of the dressers and opened it. After a few minutes he managed to choose one of his 'princely' outfits and promptly put it on. He went into the adjacent room and tossed his soapy clothes in the tub, and glanced at himself in the mirror with wide cerulean eyes. He defiantly looked like the king's oldest son now. He gave a sigh and combed all the ruffled blonde knots out of his hair only adding to the royal affect. He hesitated another moment to gaze at himself in the mirror.

He looked foreign to himself. There was no other way to explain it. He didn't look like himself. He thought he looked like some fancy puppet all dressed up just so someone else could show him off. He kinda felt like it too. Just then Naruto's stomach grumbled again and he sighed.

Then Naruto heard the door unlock from the outside, and he flinched. It could only be one person. "Naruto?" a deep voice called. Naruto took a deep breath and went to go greet his father. Naruto turned the corner and bowed deeply. "You can rise," the king said after a moment. Naruto stood up straight, but kept his head to the ground, not once looking up at the king. "Have you thought about what you have done?" Naruto's father asked.

Naruto nodded slowly and replied quietly pretending to be ashamed of himself, "Yes, sir." The Usumaki king nodded slowly for a long time, satisfied. Then suddenly Naruto's stomach gave a loud groan. Naruto flinched. The king frowned. "You are still not permitted to leave your room, but I will have a servant bring you up some food. I must go back to my duties now."

Naruto nodded again and bowed. "Thank you very much, sir." His father nodded again and without another word, left the room. As the door shut, Naruto gave a sigh of relief. Then he heard the door lock. He sighed again.

Naruto flopped onto his bed and buried his head into one of the pillows nearly falling asleep on contact.

Sakura finished the kitchen 4 minutes earlier. She grinned to herself and jumped up, carefully wringing out the towel and placing it in the sink. She walked over to the table and sat down in the chair, putting the bucket on the table and admiring her work. She smiled and nodded to herself.

"Sakura once again has victory over the kitchen! The score is tied, demon floor!" She said in a low voice before bursting into giggles. **'Stop goofing off!'** Her inner self demanded. She put a hand over her mouth to stifle the giggles and calmed herself down. She grabbed the stray loaf of bread and began too much on it contently.

Sasuke walked hastily own the corridor to the kitchen and walked through the opened doors, to see Sakura munching on a small loaf of bread. He stopped for a moment. She looked really….adorable. And she was talking to herself again. Sasuke smiled. He thought it was so cute when she did that...no! What was he thinking?! Both peasants or not, he was still higher than her. He just had to be careful to achieve the bare minimum so he wouldn't get ranked up...at least until she turned 16...He blinked and took off the smile from his face, walking in.

"Finally done Sakura?"

She let out what sounded like a little growl. "Sasuke! I got it done under the time you gave me!" She stuck out her tongue. "Even though you gave me less time than it would usually take to get it done..." She muttered under her breath so he could barely hear. He threw her a stern look and she squeaked before mumbling a quick, "Sorry sir!"

He shook his head and ran a hand through his hair. Oh right, the chore. He coughed. "Sakura, it seems the," He coughed again. "Oldest prince has been _grounded_ for a few hours now..."

She gave him a look that said showed she had no clue what the heck he was talking about and he sighed and continued. "And he's hungry." She stopped nibbling on the bread and blushed uneasily. Putting the bread down and fiddling with her dress. "So, the king asked me to send food up to his room. Some bread and cheese or something should do Sakura."

Her jade eyes widened. "You want _me _to deliver it?"

He rolled his obsidian eyes. "No, the_ other_ Sakura."

She looked confused for a second so he sighed. "No, _you_ Sakura."

She made and 'o' shape with her mouth and he sighed. He was kind of peeved.

He'd like to do it himself, but other duties call. He didn't trust that prince at all. Sakura had stopped fiddling with her dress and stood up to gather some food from the pantry.

"I don't know...where his room is Sasuke."

For a moment he felt sorry for the girl. She'd never been into the royal chambers.

He sighed. "Take the maid staircase up to floor 2, left spiral to level 5, and his room is the fourth to the right."

She nodded. He nodded back curtly. "That's all." He left the kitchen.

Sakura gathered up some food and placed it on a tray while mumbling to herself, willing herself not to forget. "Maid staircase, floor 2, left spiral, level 5, fourth to the right." She finished putting the food on the tray and walked up the maid staircase while still mumbling.

Over by the stable Sasuke smacked his head, just recalling something. Sakura plus stairs plus food equals disaster! He sighed. He'd have to check that after he was done with the horses.

"Maid staircase, floor 2, left spiral, level 5, fourth to the right. Maid staircase, floor 2, left spiral, level 5, fourth to the right." She got to level two and started up the spiral staircase, starting to get lost in her thoughts while still mumbling the directions.

All of a sudden she felt her foot trip on a tassel at the edge of the wall. Her eyes widened as she prepare to fall. She was such a klutz! Wait. No. Not this time! She slowly bent forward regaining her balance and stood up. She sighed in relief starting up the staircase again, with more determination than ever.

She continued up the stairs until level 5. "Ok, fourth to the right, fourth to the right, fourth to the right, ah, here it is!" She stopped at a redwood door and knocked twice.

Naruto jumped as someone knocked on the door. He took a few moments to regain his princely composure. He got off of his bed and straitened his hair. Bisu also gave a squawk of protest as she was also roused from her slumber. Not really feeling up to standing, he sat down on the bed and waited.

"Come in," Sakura heard a shuffling sound and then the prince's voice telling her to enter. She sweat dropped as the tried to balance the tray of food with one hand while opening the door with another, only to find it locked. She sighed. This was not her day. She slowly and carefully placed the tray of food onto the floor outside the door and turned to unlock and open it.

Just then Sasuke came rushing down the hall and almost crashed into her. He stopped and said hurriedly "Where's the mess?" while looking around.

Sakura sighed. Was she really that klutzy, and...undependable? "There isn't any Sasuke."

He stopped and stared at her before blinking a couple of times. "No...mess?"

She shook her head and grinned. "Nope, no mess!" She jumped up. "I made it all the way up her without tripping-" She tripped on a rug and fell over on the floor next to the food. She sighed. "Never mind..."

Sasuke had to stifle a laugh. He very deliberately calmly said. "Oh okay, good. I'll see you back downstairs then." Before hurrying off. When he got down the second stairwell he burst into sly laughter. Naruto paused for a moment as he heard talking outside and sighed.

Sakura stood up and brushed some dust off her skirt. She heard laughter from the bottom of the stairs and huffed. "Stupid Sasuke..."

She turned her attention back to the door and unlocked it, picking up the tray and stepping in. As soon as she stepped in her green eyes widened as she gasped. She had never seen so many nice things before! Realizing what she was doing she stopped herself and blushed.

"Uh...here's your food..." She walked over to the bed where he was sat, trying not to gape at anything, but was having a hard time because even the floor was decorated with extravagances.

He glanced up and nearly gaped as Sakura walked in, her long pink hair falling after her. He caught himself in the act though and smacked himself in the head. "Stop it!" he thought to himself. "What is wrong with you?! Keep a level head.

Only a servant. . . She is just a servant. . ." No matter how hard he tried, though, he couldn't stop himself from staring at her. She was so amazed by everything around her, the things he took for granted every day. That brilliant shine in her gorgeous, yet innocently green eyes.

It was blatantly obvious she couldn't tell he was the boy who just slipped in a puddle of suds in the kitchen. He was mostly jostled from his thoughts when she put down the plate of food and the smell hit his nostrils. After a moment he realized his mouth was open and his tongue was out, ready to devour the simple meal and he promptly shut it, his face turning a little pink.

He looked down at the ground pausing for a moment and then the familiar voice quietly said, "Thanks, Sak-" he caught himself and mid act and slurred his words to change the sentence, "-Sank you for the food." He inwardly cringed noting how stupid he sounded. His eyes wanted to look up at her, but they stayed locked on the ground.

'What are you saying?!' He yelled to himself in his mind. 'You imbecile! You can't even think straight!'

Ah, forget good manners! Her eyes traveled among all the room, as if they were trying to suck in every detail of this extravagance. Her jade green orbs jolted upwards to the prince as she thought she heard her name being called, but realizing he was only thanking her for the food, she glanced away and blushed red.

She could've sworn...she looked back at him. He looked familiar...she couldn't quite put her finger on it though...all of a sudden she heard a screaming voice in the back of her mind reminding her not to stare at royalty. **'Cha Sakura! Be proper! Stop staring!' **She heard the voice say…loudly. She looked away, but then realizing his eyes were glued to the floor, she studied him. He did quite look a lot like that boy in the kitchen! Although she couldn't be sure...and it would be rude to ask...but before she realized it a few words had slipped out of her mouth. "Do I know you?"

Realizing this she gasped slightly and covered her mouth, muttering apologies. "I'm sorry, so sorry sir." Her whole face flushed a deeper red. Her and her big mouth!

Before he could stop himself, Naruto's hand twitched slightly. Sakura shuffled her feet away from the bed, slowly moving backwards, and her whole face bright red. "Sorry! Sorry sorry-whoa!" Sakura tripped over a tassel on the rug and fell over.

All her attention turned to the rug. "Ack! Stupid, stupid rugs! I've tripped on two already! TWO! Almost tripped on one on the stairs...argh! Stupid, **deceiving**, _evil_, demon rugs-"

She looked up from her spot on the floor and remembering where she was, her blush reappeared. Congratulations ladies and gentlemen, we have a new shade of red!

It took Naruto a moment to realize what happened, but he jumped up from the bed and went over to her. He wasn't laughing. Sakura sat on the floor blushing like crazy.

"Are you alright?" he asked quickly. There was only concern in his voice and eyes. "Here, let me help you up. . ." he reached out his hand to help her up. She took it daintily and stood up.

"Thanks." she said, still blushing slightly. Seeing the concern in his eyes she felt more at ease around him. "I'm okay." She giggled softy. "I've tripped over two rugs since I've gotten to your room. I'm a bit of a…klutz." She bushed some dust off her sleeve. "I'm sorry, I kinda...yeah." She felt at loss for words. She sighed. "I thought I recognized you from somewhere."


	3. A single kiss

**Author's notes: **If you rate more, I'll update faster!

Chapter 3

Naruto paused for a long moment, not looking anywhere in particular. His eyes revealed he was deep in thought.

Naruto's mind was suddenly not as cloudy as before, and he intended to take full advantage of it. Some how, there was something different about now that made him feel more at peace than just a moment ago. He didn't let his mind stray too far on that subject though. There was something more important he needed to think about.

Something deep inside of Naruto made him want to give Sakura a huge hug, tell her the whole story, and then whisk her off… somewhere. He didn't really know where. Somewhere besides here. That is the only conclusion he let his mind come to before he grabbed onto his thoughts once more.

'_Stop,'_ he thought to himself. _'Don't get yourself hung up on this. Stop this here and now, or you will regret it later. Just forget anything ever happened. You can never know this girl. You are a prince. Forget about the servant. You have better things to worry about. Better fish to fry. . .' _Part of him didn't believe himself. He just did not understand what could make him so attached to this servant girl.

Then a strange thought came to mind, _'. . . Could it be. . . love? Whoa! Stop right there! No way! You haven't even ever really liked a girl before. There was the occasional nice hair or dress or what not, but never really liked a girl. How on earth can I really tell this might be love? Why would I think that? Completely absurd! Remember you duty. You can't even think about falling in love with anyone right now except for a princess. That is my destiny. . .'_ Or was it?

His mind was getting blurry again because of the lack of food and the increasing potent fumes entering his nostrils. Even Bisu gave a squawk as she smelled the food remembering it was nearly time for her dinner. Naruto opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out because the princely part and the Naruto part of his mind couldn't come to an agreement. He ended up giving a pathetic shrug. Now he was looking everywhere except for at Sakura.

She put her finger on her chin thoughtfully and paused for a moment. She could've sworn...she looked at him. Just then it hit her. He was the boy from the kitchen!

It was him? The _prince_ was in the kitchen?! She gasped in her mind. It was him...Na...Naruto! She looked at him again. _'Oh...he changed his clothes...' _She thought. Hey, she may be a peasant, and she may not know how to read, but she's not stupid! Just...a little...klutzy.

He was staring at everything but her. _'He must not want me to know it's him...I better leave him be.' _She sighed. She'd leave him be then.

Sakura bowed. "Ok...sorry _sir_. I'll leave you be." She turned around and walked to the door. Still turned around she smiled to herself. "Oh, and please say hi to Naruto for me." And with that she walked toward the door.

Naruto's hand twitched. Suddenly his eyes went wide as Sakura's words sunk in. She knew it was him! Naruto surprised himself when his heart gave a sudden leap. Why was he so happy? So. . . she guessed who he was, so what? Something about her knowing who he was made him happy.

Naruto subconsciously turned his head toward her and blinked once as he saw she was heading out. His thoughts were sprinting through his head too fast and his heart was pounding too loudly to hear her footsteps.

"Wait!" Naruto called to Sakura before he had a chance to think over his actions. He flinched once he realized what he had done. Why did he tell her to wait? He had nothing more to tell her. . . did he? Naruto didn't know. He stood there with a really stupid look on his face.

Sakura spun around, startled. He just...told her to...wait? Wait what? She gazed absently into his blue eyes. What was he thinking...? Why had she...said that? Then all of a sudden, like being hit with a truck, it struck her.

His blue eyes, gazing seemingly at empty air. His smile. His tan skin and strange whisker markings. His blonde hair. She preferred it messy, but whatever. Wait.

She was in love. With the prince.

Was that why her heart skipped in the kitchen?

She'd fallen in love with the boy in the kitchen, and now was falling for him..._all over again._ No, no, no! This would not do. Why was love so hard on her?

Always whacking her around...sure she'd only ever felt this before...with Sasuke. Why, she was still confused with her relationship with him. On and off, on and off. Stupid little things that he did. And now same with Naruto!

God damnitt, why was love so confusing...?

All of a sudden her heart sunk. She started to wish she had a mom, or a friend to talk to about this...

Wait, she was still staring. Shoot!

She quickly felt her whole face burn up and she spun around, almost tripping on another of those stupid rug tassels. She turned with her back to him, trying desperately to cover the bright flush over her face.

Why her? Why _him_?!

Naruto didn't say anything for a long time. He just stood there with that dumb look. He managed to break his stare once he caught a glimpse of her blushing again before she turned around. Then he found his own face turning red. Gaping at a servant.

Of all the. . .

_"Wait,"_ Naruto thought to himself, _"What are you doing?! Stop it you idiot !" _Naruto suddenly found himself walking toward Sakura. _"You idiot! Stop! You know what kind of trouble you can cause for yourself? Forget about it! FORGET ABOUT IT! Can you hear me idiot?!?!"_ Naruto's body was apparently not listening to his princely side.

He stopped just a few feet short of Sakura's back. He quietly swallowed.

"Sakura?" He asked in a slightly hushed voice so he wouldn't scare her if she didn't hear his pounding footsteps on the ground. As if. His face was still the same shade of red.

She heard her name and quickly spun around, only to come face to face with an equally blushing prince.

He was talking to her...! He knew her name...! And...oh my...their faces were inches apart! Sakura's blush quickly lessened. She felt her heart skip a beat, as she locked her gaze with his, lost in his cerulean eyes.

Naruto swallowed again as her jade eyes locked on his. His heart beat painfully loud in his head and his face turned its infamous cherry red. After a moment though his heart beat began to slow and the color started to drain back to its normal hue. Something just seemed… right. He looked deep in her green eyes and then it hit him.

She. . . felt the same way too?! His princely part tried to deny it, but that was tossed aside immediately. Before his mind registered the command, his hand slowly moved upward to touch her cheek as if to affirm that she was actually there and he wasn't dreaming the whole thing up.

Her eyes stared deeply into his as she felt his hand move to her cheek and touch it softly. Her mind had stopped trying to tell her to be reasonable. Her heart, seizing the opportunity took control of her as she gently brought her hand up to her cheek and rested it softly upon his, almost as if to keep his hand there. Her other hand reached out to his face, gently brushing her fingers across his cheek, as if to solidify that this wasn't an illusion to her mind, which had a while ago stopped.

Time for Naruto seemed to stop, to freeze in this moment just for them. Now it was like royalty and servants were the illusion. Sakura's hand seemed to have brushed away every last miniscule trace of doubt, shutting the princely side of him up seemingly for good. Now there was only Naruto.

A smile slowly spread across his face. He couldn't' ever really remembering being him. Just him. No one else telling him what to do or what to say or how to act.

Just Naruto.

Slowly, as if Naruto could control time instead of time controlling him, he took his time, savoring the moment. He gently tilted Sakura's face upward and lowered his head, drawing their faces closer together.

She lifted her head up and without thinking of anything but the two of them, drew her lips closer to his. Naruto closed his eyes and their lips touched softly together. As his lips met hers she all of a sudden felt her heart beat faster. The kiss was soft, like nothing she had ever experienced before. She wished the moment would last forever. She moved her hands up and wrapped her arms around his neck, slowly deepening the kiss.

Naruto tensed slightly as Sakura wrapped her arms around him, but soon relaxed again. He carefully reached out his hands and wrapped them around Sakura's back, drawing her into his chest.

After a moment Naruto choked slightly and had to draw away for another moment to catch his breath. His face turned a little pink. It was blatantly obvious he did not have much experience in this area because he forgot to breathe.

She giggled cutely at his blush and wrapped her arms around him, pulling him into a small hug. She smiled. She just needed a hug. Come to think of it, she didn't think she'd ever had one before anyway...she didn't care now though. Naruto was the only thing that mattered, and even if she would have to spend the rest of her life working for the king, this was worth it.

Naruto's blush only intensified as Sakura giggled. He didn't care about it though. He hated it when other people laughed at him, but he liked her laugh. It had such a sweet, innocent tone about it, just like everything else about her. He smiled again.

Naruto blinked as Sakura hugged him. He hesitated for a short moment confused, but then returned the hug. He closed his eyes as he embraced her tightly. How long had it been since someone actually hugged him? Like a real hug? Not one of those quick little ones, but one from someone who _loved_ him for him.

She buried her head into his chest and held onto him, as if he was her life raft on a treacherous sea. She never, ever, wanted to let him go. The only thing that occupied her was him. He was her focus. The center of her universe.

She pulled away from him softly, holding him at arms length. She gazed into his eyes and saw a tear present on one of his cheeks. She slowly lifted her hand up and softly brushed it away. She leaned in close again and whispered something she would've never thought she'd hear coming out of her mouth.

"I love you."

He reluctantly loosened his grip and let Sakura pull away. His eyes widened in surprise as she brushed the tear away. He hadn't even realized it was there! He never let anyone see a shadow of doubt cross his face, much less _cry_.

He paused for a moment, not out of shock or purely of being dumbfounded, when Sakura spoke those words. He rather let them really sink in for a moment. He saw it in her eyes that she felt what he felt.

But was it really love? It had to be. It just had to be. Sakura was the very best thing that had ever happened to him. Even if it was just for these few minutes, and in two months time he had to choose a princess to marry. At least he knew what real love felt like. Maybe. . . some how. . . he would find a way. . .

Naruto leaned in close to Sakura's ear and whispered softly back in her ear,

"I love you too."

She smiled at this and leaned against him, softly feeling the fine material of his clothes. She would like to stay here forever...but...she couldn't. It had to end, like all good things that had ever happened to her. She inhaled a slow breath and looked up to meet his gaze.

"I have to go." She said just barely over a whisper. Naruto rested his head against hers as she leaned against him. Her cotton candy hair smelled oddly like rose petals, and it was soft and beautiful. She reluctantly pulled away and Naruto looked at Sakura in the eyes as she did so. He frowned at her words, his heart suddenly sinking as reality hit him hard and fast. Naruto felt like all of a sudden someone had taken a hammer to his heart and smashed it to million pieces just so they could laugh at him.

She then gave him the brightest smile she'd ever given anyone. She poked his chest lightly and playfully.

"Unlike some people who are _grounded_, I've got chores to do."

At the poke Naruto was knocked out of his thoughts and couldn't' help but laugh softly with the combination of the smile and the insult. No. This would not be the end. He would find a way. No matter what it took, he would find a way.

Inside, she was doubting herself. If she left now...would she ever see him again? They could never be together...No, she had hope. She loved him, and now she knew he loved her. Love always prevailed...right?


	4. Reflections

**Author's notes: **Well, I'm so exited! I just got added to my favorite c2 forum! Yay! So in celebration, I typed up this chapter as quick as I could! Sorry if it's a little short though. I've been having a tough writer's block.

Chapter 4

"If you must go. . ." Naruto replied with over exaggeration and humor in his voice, "Try to find an excuse to visit me again sometime, and I will try to find the time to sneak out. I might even play another prank just to be grounded again. This is by far the best grounding I have ever had!" Naruto gave Sakura a kind, encouraging smile. He put a hand on Sakura's shoulder. His eyes were convinced that everything will be ok.

She giggled at his enthusiasm. "I'm sure it was."

And as she looked up into his sky blue eyes all traces of doubt left her mind. Yes, love _would_ prevail. She knew it now. "I'll see you again then, Naruto." She gently brushed against his arms and then softly turned around and left the room.

She quietly closed the door, purposely not locking it. She smiled to herself and spun around on the rug like a love-sick girl, who had nothing other to think about, before tripping on a rug tassel and falling over. She fell to the floor with a loud thump.  
"STUPID RUG!"

Naruto watched longingly as Sakura left his room. He stared at the door for a long moment realizing he already missed her presence. He slowly reached up his hand to his mouth and touched his lips as he pondered on the new-found memory of her kiss.

He could remember her in detail. If there was one thing that helped him get through his studies was his incredible memory, especially his memory of the things he wanted to remember.

He let out a silent sigh as his eyes were covered over by a dreamy glaze.

How he wanted to run outside right now, find her before she got too far, and kiss the pink-haired beauty again and again. That wasn't possible though. If someone caught them… he shuddered. Everything would have to be in secret for now.

One thing was for sure though. He would do better next time. Forgetting to breathe. . . The blonde smacked himself in the head. Of all the lousy, numbskull things to do. Well. . . it was his first kiss. Kinda. He had been forced to kiss princesses and stuff before, but only a peck.

Nothing at all like THAT. But. . . then how come she knew how to breathe? Had she. . . done something like that before. . . ? Nah! No way!

They loved each other, right? Of course you can only love one person. Maybe she could hold her breath longer. Yah. That was it.

She could hold her breath longer. He didn't have the largest lung capacity in the world. That was a given fact after his first sword lesson. He shuddered again.

Before he could ponder anymore on the subject he let his thoughts return to Sakura. Her rags could not hide her beauty. Those beautiful jade eyes bright in color like his. . . but then again they were different.

He could lose himself for hours in those eyes full of innocence and joy. How can someone like her have so much joy in their life? It was a profound mystery to him that only added to her attractiveness.

Her long, pink hair so soft to the touch. Everything that had been hidden for years under the smudge of servant hood. Just think of what she would look like without the dirt and the suds and the rags but instead in a flowing ball gown.

A beautiful princess.

He let his thoughts deepen for a few more moments until Bisu let out a sudden screech of annoyance. Naruto jumped a few inches off the ground and nearly fell to the ground.

His face became bright cherry red as if someone had caught him doing something he shouldn't have been doing. Once he realized no one had read his thoughts he shook his head and glanced over at Bisu who had her feathers ruffled.

Nap time was over. It was time for her to be let out of her cage. Naruto sighed and went over and unlatched her cage, letting her fly about the room.

He took a moment to watch her fly about until she finally landed on his bed next to the food. . . _Grumble_. His eyes went wide. FOOD!

He stood in shock for a moment until Bisu decided to peck at the bread and ripped a little piece off. After Naruto was done eating, he thought back and wondered if he had ever sprinted and devoured a meal that fast before.

Sakura literally _skipped_ down the stairs, tripping 4 times. She counted.

She let out a sigh of happiness before skipping down to the kitchen. Her green eyes swept once around the room before she decided it looked perfectly neat and tidy, and she skipped over to a small-ish wooden door with two latches.

She happily opened the top latch and started to fiddle with the other. She could just never get the second one open on her first try. It was rusted over with dust and a little dirt.

She sighed and ran over to the sink, getting a spare piece of cloth and wetting it. She took it over to the door and cleaned up the second lock, thrusting it open with her hand.

She smiled contently and put the cloth back in the sink, before pulling the surprisingly heavy door open.

She smiled again and lit a candle, carefully making her way down the cellar. She got to the last step and swept the candlelight around the room, making sure no one was there.

Her focus stopped when she saw one figure over at the side of the room. She called softly to the person.

"Sister Tsunade?"

The figure turned and nodded a hello, before returning to her work, probably weaving. Sakura smiled and walked to the edge of the dark room, pondering on how a blind woman could weave.

She almost tripped on something and resumed her focus. She walked to the edge of the room and found another heavy wooden door, with one latch.

She carefully undid it by candlelight and pulled open the door, stepping into to the room and closing it behind her. She surveyed her bedroom. There was one window, currently covered with a makeshift curtain, and a bed of straw with two blankets, made by sister Tsunade.

Sakura carefully blew out the candle and pulled the curtain to the side, allowing sunshine to flood through the room. She grinned and sat down on her bed.

She really did love him.

She put two fingers softly to her lips in thought. She had never ever kissed anyone before. No seriously, that was her first kiss period. The first sign of affection she'd ever received...or given.

That's how she knew it was love.

How the kiss felt so right.

It fit.

She recalled the kiss and giggled slightly as she remembered how Naruto ran out of air on the kiss. Come to think of it, why did she remember to breathe herself?

She had never even been witness to something phenomenal like that! She tried to recalled and remembered just, well, knowing what to do. It just came to her, and she did what felt right.

It worked.

But Naruto...it felt a little odd calling him that, even now. She loved his eyes.

They were a soft ocean's deep blue, the color of the fog and ocean's spray. Mystifying and forever bringing new hues of deeper waves that crashed in, alive and awake to every flooding event.

She sighed happily again and propped herself against the wall. She felt so...complete.

She decided right then and there that she didn't care what she had to do; she would be with Naruto, someway. She would try with all her power. They would have to meet in secret...but how? She already missed him, now she thought about it.

She felt like a piece of her was left in his room.

But she would let the memory of that kiss fill the void for now.


End file.
